Popular Sacramento high school principal put on leave

A field trip to Humboldt County raises questions

Students at the Met, a charter high school in downtown Sacramento, are without their beloved principal, who was placed on paid administrative leave, after questions surfaced over a trip that included students and school staff.

The principal, Allen Young, has been on leave since Wednesday afternoon, a spokesman for the Sacramento City Unified School District confirmed to KCRA 3 on Friday.

The district spokesman, Gabe Ross, said the district is conducting an investigation, but could not discuss the nature of the allegations against the principal.

Sacramento Police spokesman Doug Morse said an officer at the school Friday was assisting a law enforcement agency in Humboldt County that is investigating the matter. Morse could not discuss the allegations against Young, explaining that the agency in Humboldt County is the lead agency investigating the matter.

Ross confirmed that two adults from the high school and three students were on a field trip to Humboldt County between April 12 through April 14, but could not confirm whether the allegations against Young stem from the trip.

Many students at the school said that they did not want to talk about the matter.

Others told KCRA 3 that they don’t know exactly what Young is accused of, and that they have been left to wonder whether they’ll see Young at the school again.

A teacher at the school resigned on Tuesday, but Ross could not say whether her resignation is connected to the investigation underway or to the trip.

Young is popular at the school, with a campus of about 300 students and small class sizes. The Met is known for providing mentors to students and for encouraging students to take internships and to travel.

On Friday, students said their principal’s work has been crucial to the school’s success.

“He’s the glue of the paper at this school,” said Stefan Costa Levene, 16. “He holds this school together. He does nothing but try to hold this school together.”

A parent, Jennifer DeLeon, said she has two daughters at the school, neither of whom has direct knowledge of any wrongdoing by the principal.

“Knowing my personal experience with Allen, with my children, he has made such a positive difference in their lives, and that’s what I’m going on,” DeLeon said.

Morse said when Sacramento police have completed their portion of the investigation, they will forward their findings to the Humboldt agency.